KASEY KAHNE to Drive for Woodhouse Performance in SPEED GT Race at Lowes Motor Speedway
Woodhouse Performance announced today NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series driver Kasey Kahne will pilot the No. 13 Woodhouse Performance Dodge Viper Competition Coupe in the SPEED World Challenge series race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
Kasey Kahne joins fellow NASCAR NEXTEL Cup competitor Jimmie Johnson in the SCCA Pro-Racing GT Series race, which will take place following CTC's presentation of NEXTEL Cup qualifying Thursday night May 24.
"This is a neat opportunity to better myself as a road course racer," Kahne said. "With the upcoming races at Sonoma and Watkins Glen, it gives me a chance to learn more about this style of driving. I appreciate Ray Evernham giving me the opportunity to participate and have some fun at the same time."
Kasey Kahne, driver the No. 9 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge for Evernham Motorsports, has competed in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series for the last three years. He has accumulated seven-career NEXTEL Cup Series wins, 30 top-five and 42 top-10 finishes and earned Rookie of the Year honors in 2004. Last season he won six races and secured a spot in NASCAR's Chase for the NEXTEL Cup. He finished eighth in the driver points standings, completing his most successful year to date. Kasey Kahne is one of NASCAR's most well-known drivers and is considered a superstar in the series.
Woodhouse Performance has been competing in the SPEED World Challenge GT Series for the past four years with team owner Bob Woodhouse, 61, behind the wheel of the No. 13 Viper. The 2006 season saw Woodhouse post eight top- 10 and four top-five finishes in 10 races in the same chassis Kasey Kahne will drive at Lowe's. Woodhouse Performance has become proficient at the aerodynamic balance of the Dodge Viper, reducing drag and maintaining a top performing racecar in the tightly contested SPEED World Challenge series.
"A lot of NASCAR fans have no clue what the World Challenge Series is Having Kasey Kahne in the series gives them a chance to learn," Team Owner Bob Woodhouse said. "On the flip side, World Challenge competitors get to learn from the masters, how they make a really great show."
Teammate to Kasey Kahne at Charlotte will be Woodhouse Performance driver Jeff Courtney, who pilots the No. 99 Kenda Tires/ProMPI Dodge Viper Competition Coupe. He is looking forward racing alongside the NASCAR superstar.
"I can't say enough about the potential this event and these NASCAR drivers bring to our series, teams, sponsors and drivers," Courtney said. "Its exciting that we have another big name racing in our series at Charlotte, and the fact one is joining Woodhouse Performance as a teammate is a bonus."
Courtney sits 11th in the series championship points standings, after posting top-15 finishes in the first two races of the season.
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